MST3K 701T - Night of the Blood Beast
The Short Once Upon a Honeymoon (1956) Synopsis A songwriter's wife, frustrated about not having had a honeymoon with her husband for a year after their marriage due to his work schedule, fantasizes about new home decor with matching colored phones, with the help of a fey bespectacled angel. Information * Once Upon a Honeymoon is also the title of a 1942 film starring Cary Grant and Ginger Rogers. * This short was included on Shorts, Volume 3, released by Rhino Entertainment on VHS in January 2001, and on DVD in August 2004 as an limited time exclusive bonus for ordering MST3K: The Essentials from a specially created Rhino site (then by Shout! Factory on Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Singles Collection in May 2018). The Movie Synopsis A test pilot returns from a pioneering near-space flight, completely intact physically but apparently dead. He recovers, but with strange new blood cells and prawn-like embryos in his abdomen. They are part of the vanguard of an alien invasion, and the pilot must decide if he will sacrifice himself to stop them. The Episode Host Segments Prologue: Happy Thanksgiving! Did you see the game? Any guess as to which sport it actually is, as Gypsy points out. Segment One: Dr. F’s Thanksgiving party continues, and it's pretty swinging. Dr. F introduces Pearl to the crew, but it turns out she somehow already knows Crow as "Art". He's forgotten to get a movie to show to the SOL crew as that was Frank's job; fortunately, Pearl has one. Segment Two: Crow and Tom put on a skit to explain to Mike why stuffing is superior to potatoes. Stuffing has pulled children from burning buildings while potatoes watched helplessly as innocents were beaten to death! Mike's revelation that both would be served is met favorably by the Bots. Segment Three: Everyone gathers around to hear Michael Feinstein play. Pearl takes a break from the festivities to chat amiably with "Art" for awhile; alas, she is no more prone to pushing the "bring down the SOL button" than Frank was. Segment Four: It's time for Thanksgiving dinner on the SOL and after the hymn, the crew finds Crow has disappeared. Turns out he slipped into Deep 13's dinner instead. Each party member goes around the table and gives thanks to God. Pearl thanks Him for Clayton...kind of. Clayton is thankful for his mom and his evilness. The other party guests requests are just as strange. Segment Five: The Bots present their skit on Mincemeat vs. Pumpkin. They are slightly biased against mincemeat. In the meantime, Pearl’s "turkey surprise" has incapacitated all of Dr. F's party guests, except for a sobered-up Jack Perkins, who helps the Mads wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving. Stinger: "A wounded animal that large isn't good..." Guest cast *Mr. B Natural: Bridget Jones *Pitch: Paul Chaplin *Kitten with a Whip: Kevin Murphy *Jack Perkins: Michael J. Nelson Other Notes *Mary Jo Pehl's first regular appearance as Pearl Forrester. *Crow's nickname of "Art" goes back in MST History. Waaaay back. *Beth McKeever started as an intern with this episode. *Two versions of this episode exist: this one, shown during the premiere of the MST3K Anthology (a.k.a. "Turkey Day '95"), and a second one used for subsequent rebroadcasts. The episodes differ only in their host segments; the theater segments are identical. *Both the Turkey Day and rebroadcast versions of this episode were included in the Volume 16 release. The special Turkey Day intro segments for the preceding episodes were also included as a special feature. *This is one of the few "full cast" episodes in which all of the regular members of the cast and the credited writing staff - Nelson, Murphy, Beaulieu, Pehl, Chaplin, and Jones - appear in scenes together (see also Experiment 811). Jim Mallon does not appear, though he is only credited as a Contributing Writer in this episode. *Pearl's "Turkey Surprise" recipe basically amounts to severely under-cooking the turkey and rubbing it with a turtle, both of which are likely to cause salmonella poisoning in whoever ate such a dish. While salmonella can be fatal, it is not always so. Callbacks * "Well, I can't find the Blood Beast, but I seen the Beast of Yucca Flats." Obscure References *''"I love to go swimmin' / with bow-legged women / and swim between their legs..."'' Jack Perkins sings this traditional sea shanty, which has been referenced in multiple pop culture sources, and even sung by Colonel Potter in an episode of M*A*S*H. * "Mrs. Muir!" A reference to the movie and TV series The Ghost and Mrs. Muir. In the TV series, the line was usually spoken by Charles Nelson Reilly, whose character in the show, like the angel in the short, was a bespectacled and somewhat effete. *''"It's all part of my kitchen fantasy."'' Sung to the tune of Rock 'N' Roll Fantasy by Bad Company. *''"Hi! We're looking for an honest man?"'' Diogenes, a Greek philosopher, supposedly walked around with a lamp during the daytime; when questioned why he was doing this, he would say he was looking for an honest man. Steve (or maybe it's Steve) is carrying a lamp in a manner reminiscent of many paintings and statues of Diogenes. *[ "The last thing I remember..." ] "I was heading for the door..." A line from the song "Hotel California" by the Eagles. *''"They mean to win Wimbledon."'' A reference to a Monty Python sketch, also about amorphously shaped aliens. * "Welcome to Shakey's!" Shakey's is a chain of pizza restaurants. In the 70s, they had an "old-timey" theme that includes things like self-playing pianos. * "Music by Ray Manzarek." Ray Manzarek was the keyboardist for the Doors, and was primarily responsible for the distinctive, keyboard-heavy sound of such songs as Light My Fire. * "Mr. Fawlty, she's-a crazy!" A reference to "The Psychiatrist" episode of Fawlty Towers, when Basil is outside at night, using his ladder to try to catch a guest with a girl in his room. Manuel's broken English causes Sybil to think Basil is actually trying to peep on a beautiful female guest. * "Vanna Bourke-White!" Margaret Bourke-White was a photographer, Vanna White is a television personality known for turning the letters over on Wheel of Fortune. Vanna White's intellect is sometimes called into question in pop culture, given that she rarely, if ever, has any spoken lines in Wheel of Fortune, and is performing a menial, effortlessly-accomplished task that could easily have been automated. Video Release * Commercially released on DVD by Shout! Factory in December 2009 as part of The Mystery Science Theater 3000 Collection: Volume 16, a 4-DVD set with The Corpse Vanishes, Santa Claus, and Warrior of the Lost World. Category:MST3K Episodes Category:Season 7 Category:Episodes with shorts Category:Movies directed by Jim Mallon Category:Turkey Day Category:Season Premieres